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London Walking

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. I do love London! On our second last day, we made the most of the fine weather with a walk in the city, where we found monuments, memorials and M&Ms!

After leaving the Jewel Tower, our destination was the Prince of Wales Theatre for a performance of The Book Of Mormon. With a few hours to spare and not far to go, we had plenty of time for sightseeing on the way.

From Abingdon St, we turned into Great George St where we paused while the bells of Big Ben rang out on the hour.

At Westminster Bridge, we admired the mighty Boudicca on her chariot, charging into battle against Roman invaders.

Modern battles are also remembered along Victoria Embankment. The Royal Air Force Memorial is dedicated to Air Force members who were casualties of World War 1.

Further along, the dramatic Battle of Britain London Monument commemorates British airmen who took part in the Battle of Britain in World War 2. The monument also acknowledges those from 14 other countries who joined the Allied Forces.

Just before the Golden Jubilee Bridge, we turned onto Northumberland Avenue which leads to Trafalgar Square and Admiralty Arch, commissioned by King Edward VII in memory of his mother, Queen Victoria.

Trafalgar Square is dominated by Nelson’s Column, dedicated to the memory of Admiral Horatio Nelson, who was killed during the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805. Four Barbary Lions surround the column while a statue of King George IV dressed in Roman regalia overlooks the square.

Leaving Trafalgar Square we walked around the National Gallery into Charing Cross Road. The small restaurants lining Irving Street reminded us it was time for lunch. After a break for pizza at Il Padrino, we walked into Leicester Square, the entertainment hub of London.

A kaleidoscope of colour greeted us at M&M’s World, where we stocked up on sweet treats for later.

Even after stopping at all these places we were still early for the theatre, so we continued on to Picadilly Circus and the Cool Britannia store where we bought some last minute souvenirs.

Finally it was show time, so we joined the crowd waiting to enter the Prince of Wales Theatre on Coventry Street.

That’s another thing I love about London – so many theatres, so many shows.

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55 thoughts on “London Walking”

It’s such a good looking city for strolling, isn’t it? I love Admiralty Arch and Trafalgar Square. Didn’t even know M&M’s world existed, but then, it’s a few years since I was in London. Are you off on your travels soon, Carol? 🙂 🙂

I have never seen so many M&Ms, Jo. It was a fun place to visit and of course we couldn’t resist buying some. Mr ET couldn’t figure out how to work the dispenser and we ended up buying a much bigger bagful than we intended. What a shame, I said….with a smile!

London never ceases to enthrall, every time we visit. I love your photo of Big Ben. I believe it’s being renovated and could be silent for up to four years. How unthinkable is that? Did you enjoy the show?

You just sent me off to Mr Google, hunting down ‘The Book of Mormon’. (I was thinking Really, what? Why??) I read about it on Wikipedia and then saw a number that was featured on the Tony Awards which captured my attention – I see the full show is available on YT so I’m going to watch that tonight. I’m so out of the loop on the latest shows – thanks for the introduction!!

I love walking round London – there is always so much to see. It’s good to see the tribute to the airmen who took part in the war – every time I walk past it I am struck by how real it looks – not just a stuffy block of concrete with some fancy thing on the top. I’ve not seen Book of Mormon, but I’ve heard from several people how much they enjoyed it.

I never had a desire to visit and explore England, but you are changing my mind about that. Your series about England was fantastic. And I also loved the M & M store in New York. We thought the Book of Mormon was hilarious. Hope you also enjoyed it.

Some great pictures of one of my favorite cities! Thanks for the memories. We spent four hours at “The Making of Harry Potter” when we were there two years ago and didn’t see everything, and we saw “The Book of Mormon” in Toronto several years ago. Hilarious.

The first time we went to London was in July 1999, with our daughters. They were 12 and 9 then. Wouldn’t it be funny if we were there at the same time. 🙂 We really enjoyed Book of Mormon. A little irreverent and very funny, it’s a clever piece of work.

We just missed each other, Carol, as we were there in September. Our boys were 8 and 6 then and we left them behind with their grandmother. It was the first time in a long time we’d been able to take a holiday without kids. 🙂

Ahhh finally back in London and have a chance to catch up on reading! It’s lovely following your walk as you mention monuments that I walk past so regularly that I’d begun to take them for granted. You’ve reminded me to stop and appreciate the things on my doorstep now I’m home.